World’s oldest person Tomiko Itooka dies aged 116
The world’s oldest person, 116-year-old Japanese woman Tomiko Itooka, has passed away.
She died at her nursing home in Ashiya, Hyōgo Prefecture on the night of 29 December 2024, where she resided for the past five years.
Her passing was confirmed today by LongeviQuest.
Tomiko took the title of oldest living woman and oldest living person in August 2024, following the death of 117-year-old Maria Branyas Morera.
She had made a public appearance in May 2024, when she celebrated her 116th birthday and was paid a visit by the city’s mayor.
And in September, she was visited by Guinness World Records to be presented with her official certificate.
Although hard of hearing, she remained able to communicate clearly, according to her carers.
Tomiko was born in Osaka on 23 May 1908 – during the reign of Emperor Meiji – as the middle child and eldest daughter of her family.
Tomiko aged 100
She attended an all-girls high school, where she was a member of the volleyball team.
Tomiko got married aged 20 and went on to have two daughters and two sons, as well as many grandchildren and great-grandchildren whom she is survived by.
She was 32 when Japan joined World War II, during which time she managed the office of her husband’s textile factory in addition to caring for all her children.
After Tomiko’s husband died in 1979, she lived alone in Nara Prefecture and enjoyed spending her time hiking and climbing.
She often climbed Mount Nijo, and she twice summited the 3,000-metre-high Mount Ontake.
According to Tomiko’s family, her active lifestyle was the key to her longevity.
Tomiko aged 94
A devout Buddhist, she completed the Saigoku Kannon Pilgrimage (a journey to 33 temples in the Kansai region) in her eighties.
And aged 100, she remained able to climb the stone steps of Ashiya Shrine without the aid of a walking stick.
Tomiko maintained good health well into her hundreds, living at home with her two daughters until just before her 111th birthday.
Our thoughts are with her family at this time.
Photos in body of article courtesy of LongeviQuest and Gerontology Research Group